Never Use Rickys Pool Services

MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA -- I contacted Ricky [snip] sometime ago, to tell him that Pete [snip] (the man Ricky gave our account to) had not been servicing the pool. I advised him that the pool liner was ruined because the pool had not been monitored and given the correct chemicals. I advised Ricky that I was holding him responsible for all costs incurred as a result of his lack of supervision of Pete and failure on his own part to properly service the pool. After that, he did not return my calls or communicate in any manner with me. Since he made no effort to mitigate the damage, I had the pool liner and light replaced.
Ricky was retained by my husband, Wayne to monitor the chemicals in the pool. By the end of the summer we discovered he had not added chemicals to the pool or monitored it in any way to make sure it was safe to swim in.
This entire time I had been told by him to add chlorine to the pool, and had been given instructions not to let the chlorine tube be left empty. I had never done this before, so it did not seem strange to me that I was having to add chlorine every other day. Subsequently, when the new pool man came, I found out that the gauge to the feeder tube had been opened to the maximum, and this is why I was constantly having to add chlorine. In 2011, I bought two 50 pound containers of chlorine, and I told Ricky this several times. He made no comment or investigated why that amount of chlorine was necessary.
Then, without notice, Ricky advised he was handing our account over to Pete [snip], without any knowledge or consent on our part. I was not given any resume, credentials or testimonials from past customers. Pete showed up once, but Ricky continued to bill for his services. Although Ricky did not supervise Pete, one of his last bills noted that the charges were for Pete’s services.
It took me some time to find a new pool person, but I was happy to eventually find a man who is very knowable and trustworthy, and has in excess of thirty years experience. When he visited for the first time, he was speechless. He said he had never encountered pool water in such a state. In addition to the fact that no chemicals had been added by Ricky or Pete, he found the dial to the chlorine feeder had been turned completely open. This meant that not only was Ricky not monitoring the condition of the water, but, according to his instructions, I was adding chlorine to the water almost daily or every other day.
The new man also found that the water was extremely acidic and the ph incredibly low. By Ricky not doing his job, it caused the pool liner to fail. In addition, since the water was not fit for human use, exposure to such high chlorine levels will likely result in very negative health related problems.
On may 9, 2012, I wrote a letter to Ricky, which was sent first class and by certified mail, return receipt requested. I advised Ricky that I was holding him accountable for all expenses I had incurred and which were the proximate cause of his negligence and his total disregard for the safety of my family in using the pool. The costs at that time were $4,200.
I further advised Ricky that I felt he had dealt in extremely bad faith in this transaction. I also told him I could tell whatever I said, he didn't take it seriously, so I got the message very quickly that he had no respect for women.
Ricky has since made no effort to reach me in any manner since he received both the first class and certified letters. He has never paid anything for the costs he caused us to incur.